Quenching and conveying apparatus



Sept. 28, 1948. R. E. BUCKHOLDT 2,450,112

QUENCHING AND CONVEYING APPARATUS Filed Feb. 13 1943 Patented Sept. 28, 1948 Robert E. Buokholdt. Salem, Ohio, alsignor to The Salem Engineering Company, Salem, Ohio,

at proprietorship Application February 13, 1943, Serial No. 475,780 2 Claims. (Cl. 134-133) This invention relates to material handling apparatus and more particularly to an assembly which ls operative to quench and/or convey metal objects such as billets and ordnance shells for example. The apparatus of the invention is of particular utility in the metal heat treating art and may be advantageously employed intermediate hardening and draw-furnaces. While the apparatus ls designed particularly'for and will be described in connection with the quenching of such objects upon the discharge from a hardening furnace it will become apparent. as the description proceeds, that the apparatus may be advantageously employed simply as a conveying or transferring device without the added function of quenching or immersing the objects.

In producing large quantities oi heat treated shells, billets and similar metal objects it is common practice to provide the heating furnaces with a plurality of spaced parallel troughs or channels extending longitudinally through the furnaces. The objects are pushed through the furnaces in abutting relation and slide down lnclinedtroughs at the discharge ends of the furnaces. It is one of the principal objects of the present invention to provide an improved object transferring apparatus which is operative to maintain the longitudinal alignment of the objects in the respective parallel rows during the transition of the objects from a furnace or other processing equipment to a second furnace or a second other processing device. In this manner the flow of the objects along the entire extent of the processing line is facilitated and uniformity of result in the products is assured. Moreover, individual handling of the objects is eliminated and, if desired, the processing line may be made entirely automatic.

Another object of the invention is the provision of an improved unitary and portable assembly which is of general utility in connection with a metal object treating plant. The apparatus of the invention employs a tank as the primary support for theoperative elements of the apparatus, and in practice, this tank may be readily employed for quenching, oiling, washing, and for other purposes involving the immersion of the objects in a liquid. If desired, however,'the tank may be left empty in which casethe apparatus may serve simply as a conveying or transferring unit but in either case the operation of the apparatus is such that the objects progress therethrough in an orderly and controlled manner. This mode of peratlon, in addition to facilitating the charging of the next subsequent furnace or equipment in the processing line, has the further and important advantage of being positive, 1. e., the object or parts being handled are not allowed to roll or slip, thus clogging or fouling the equipment, and in addition, the parts or objects arrive at their discharge positions in proper timed sequence to be engaged by the charging mechanism of the succeeding furnace or equipment.

The above and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon consideration of the following detailed specification and the accompanying drawing wherein there is specifically disclosed a preferred embodiment of the invention.

The single figure of the drawing is a longitudinal section of an apparatus constructed in accordance with the principles of the invention. Reference numeral l0 indicates a tank of more or less conventional construction in which the walls are formed of metal sheets or plates suitably braced by metal angles or other suitable section. Tank I0 is supported on a base consisting principally of the beams I I.

A transversely extending tube I2 is rotatably .1

mounted on the lower central portion of the tank l0 and liquid under pressure is supplied to the space within the' tube I! by the flexible pipe l3 having an inlet conduit l4 arranged to be connected to the outlet of a pump, not shown. While the apparatus of the invention normally employs a plurality of laterally spaced 'parallel paths or channels of movement through the apparatus, the paths or channels are identical and therefore but one is shown in the drawing and but one will be described.

Welded or otherwise rigidly connected to the tube 12 is a bracket. I5 to which i secured an extended nozzle or jet Iii. Nozzle I6 is connected to the space within the tube by the conduit l1; Also rigidly secured to the rotatable tube I2 is a member l8 having diametrically opposed wings arranged to engage the stops I9 tov limit the extent of rotation of the tube in either direction. Piv'otally connected with the member I! is a link 20, the upper end of which is secured to the rod 2| of a piston, not shown, housed inthe cylinder 22. Cylinder 22 is pivoted at 23 and it should be apparent that upon the application of fluid pressure to the lower end of cylinder 22 the .member l8 and tube I2 will be rotated in a clockwise direction, as viewed in the drawing, until the right wing of the member l8 engages the right stop l9. Conversely, the application of fluid pressure to the upper end of cylinder 22- will move the tube I2 and bracket [5 back to the position shown in the drawing.

Aligned with the counter-clockwise position of the nozzle i3 is a trough 24 along which the objects to be quenched. oiled, washed or transferred are adapted to slide after passing down the conveyor or chute 23. The latter may, for example, be associated with the discharge end or a hardening furnace of the pusher type and it will be understood that upon each actuation of the pusher an object will slide down the members 25 and 24. To avoid damaging impact of the objects against the brackets IS a brake is associated with the trough 24 to decelerate the objects before they reach the brackets l3. This brake consists of a shoe 23 pivoted at its upper end at 21 and having a tapered ceiling 28 which engages the tops of the objects as the latter slides down the trough 24. To the lower end of the shoe is secured a weight 23 which may be varied to vary the friction applied between the surface 28 and the shell or other objects having sliding movement relative thereto. A chain 30 limits the downward pivotal movement of the shoe 23 but is suificiently long so as not to interfere with the frictional interengagement between the surface 28 and the objects.

Extending upwardly and outwardly of the tank ill from a position adjacent the rotatable tube i2 is a trough or tube 3| having a slit opening 32 in its bottom portion extending the entire length .of the trough or tube. Slideably received in the slit 32 are the spaced dogs 33, each of which is provided with a pin 34 pivotally connecting it on a slide or carrier 35. Suitable means, not shown,

i employed to support and guide the carrier or' slide 35 for reciprocating movement along a path parallel with the longitudinal axis of the tube 3|. Such movement'is imparted by an elongated cylinder 33. the piston rod 31 of which is connected to the slide 35. In the drawing the slide 35 and the dogs 33 are shown as approaching their upper limiting positions and upon release of pressure in the lower end of cylinder 33 the slide will retract until the lowermost dog thereon reaches the position in which it is shown in dotted lines in the drawing. It will be noted that the dogs 33 are of the retractable or gate type so that they are operative to propel objects up the tube 3|. To retain the objects in their advanced positions as attained by the dogs 33 a pair of longitudinally spaced latches 33 are provided. It will be observed that the latches 38 lock the objects against downward movement while enabling said objects to progress up the tube.

As shown, the lower portion of the tube 3| is cut away at 33 and is so oriented with respect to the nozzle i3 carried by the bracket ii that upon clockwise rotation of the tube i2 and bracket IS a shell or other object on the nozzle 16 will be laid in the lower cut-away portion of the tube. If now the slide 35 is in lowermost position and cylinder 33 is actuated to move the slide upwardly the lowermost dog 33 will engage against the lower end of the said object and move the same up the tube. The length of stroke of the cylinder 33 is sufficient to insure that the lower end of the object is moved past the shoulder on the lower latch 38 whereupon this latch prevents the object from sliding back down the tube upon retraction of the slide 35. During the next succeeding outward stroke of the slide the object is lifted from the lower latch 33 to above the upper latch 38 while a second object is brought to above the lower latch 33. the first object will be transferred from above the upper latch 38 onto the trough 40 where it Upon the next outward stroke will assume a horizontal position in the trough. From this position the object may be moved longitudinally into a second furnace or other equipment by a pusher 4| as will be well understood.

In practice, the operation of cylinders 22, 38 and 4| and, in addition, the pusher cylinder the action of which discharges objects into the trough 28 if such pusher cylinder'is employed, are synchronized so that the operation of the entire line may be automatic. Thus after an object is impaled on the nozzle i8 cylinder 22 is actuated to transfer the object to the tube 3|. The retracted cylinder 36 is then actuated to move the object away from the nozzle l8 and to a position above the lower latch 38 after which both the cylinders 22 and 36 may be actuated in a reverse direction to return their operated parts back to their initial starting positions. An

important result of the operation of the present apparatus is that the objects may be progressed through the immersion apparatus or transferred from one piece of equipment to another in a spaced, orderly. and step by step manner whereby all danger of fouling or clogging the mechanism is eliminated while at the-discharge end of the apparatus conventional pushers may, if desired, be employed to effect automatically the continuance of the travel of the objects.

While the invention has been illustrated and described as applied to the quenching of tubular ordnance shells in which adaptation the jet i6 is of particular utility in furnishing a large volume of coolant to the inner surfaces of the shells, it will be apparent that the identical apparatus illustrated may also be used in quenching, oiling, washing, or other treatment involving the application of liquid or simply conveying other hollow objects. If solid objects, as round or square billets, for example, are to be processed or handled the nozzle i6 is replaced by a suitable holder which engages the outer periphery of the object being handled and which may, if desired, include provisions for impinging a jet or jets of liquid supplied by the tube i2 against the outer surface of the object. In any embodiment, it will be understoodthat a side edge of the bracket i5 is sufllciently offset or the bracket is provided with a slot to enable the lower dog 33 to strip the objects off the nozzles i8 or other retaining means employed.

Both the transferring mechanism '|2--23 and the elevating mechanism 3|--4|l of the assembly are preferably made removable from the assembly as an integral unit without requiring the oil or other liquid held in the tank ill to be first" drained. This feature is of distinct advantage in servicing or maintaining the apparatus, or in changing over the apparatus to handling a different type of object, particularly when it is considered that, in practice, the tank may be supplied wlth upwards of eight hundred gallons of liquid; The pumping out of this liquid would require additional pumping and storage facilities.

To enable the transferring mechanism |223 to be removed from the tank as a unit the same is assembled on a frame consisting of two spaced parallel vertically extending channel members 42 connected at their upper portions to a pair of spaced horizontally disposed channels 43. Each of the channels 42 is slideably received in a guideway formed by two spaced angles 44 which are fastened to the side wall of the tank i8. It will be observed that the tube i2 is journaled in supports, of which there are at least two, and these supports are in turn mounted on transversely extending members 48 which are welded or otherwise suitably fastened at their ends to the lower portions of the channels 42. As indicated, channels 48 extend out over the tops of ing mechanism :l-M, is built as an integral a unit, being slideabiy received and supported in the tank on the inclined angles 41 which are fastened to the inner surfaces of the side walls of the tank.

In the normal operation of the apparatus, it will be observed that the objects will be held by each of the latches 88 for an appreciabl length of time. The upper latch 88, being well above the level of the liquid in the tank II, will hold the objects in draining position for an appreciable length of time. There is thus provided a drainage period which allowsexcess oil or other liquid to drain off the objects before they are deposited in the trough 48. This is of advantage in most cases and particularly if the objects are to be charged from the trough 40 into a draw furnace. After draining, the obiec'ts are further elevated by the uppermost dog 33 and upon reaching a predetermined elevated position overbalance and fall into the trough 48, all as explained above. The apparatus of the invention enables the trough 48 to be positioned in line with the path of travel of the objects through the draw furnace or other falling equipment thus further simplifying the construction and operation of the complete processing line.

The invention herein'disclosed is susceptible of embodiment in various arrangements and the above specifically described embodiment should therefore be taken as illustrative only. Reference should be made to the prior state of the'art and to the spirit and scope of the appended claims in degerlmgng the scope of the invention.

1. Apparatus of the character described comfile of this patent:

prising in combination a downwardly inclined trough, a rotatable transfer device arranged to receive obiects rrom said trough, means comprising a brake shoe to decelerate said obiecte before they reach said device, an inclined upwardly troughextendingiromapositionadiacentsaiddevice, said device including means to impinge a stream of liquid onto said objects and being operative to position said objects on said upwardly inclined trough, a removable frame mounting said device, a cylinder on said frame for rotating said device, an elongated slide positioned below said last mentioned trough and mounted for reciprocating movement parallel with said last mentioned trough, means comprising a fluid pressure cylinder positioned below said slide to reciprocate the same, a plurality of spaced retractable dogs carried by said slide and operative during upward movement of the same to advance said objects along said last mentioned trough, and a plurality of retractable latches fixed with respect to said last mentioned trough and adapted to retain said objects in advanced positions whereby said objects may be advanced therealong in step by step progression.

2. In apparatus of the character described having a tank, a downwardly inclined guiding support extending into said tank, a unitary assembly comprising a movable object transferring member and means to move said member slideably received in said tank in vertically extending guideways, said member being adapted to receive objects from said support. a second unitary assembly extending into said tank and having an upwardly inclined guiding support adapted to receive objects from said member together with means to move said objects up said upwardly inclined support, vertically extending guideways in said tank for receiving said first mentioned assembly, said first mentioned assembly being removable from said tank as a unit.

ROBERT E. BUCKHOLDT.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the UNITED STATES PATENTS 

